Door opening apparatus



1935- w. D. FERRIS DOOR OPENING APPARATUS 9 Filed July 14, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet l Feb. 4, 1936. W. D. FERRIS DOOR OPENING APPARATUS Filed July 1.4, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Feb. 4, 1936 DOOR OPENING APPARATUS William D. Ferris, Sterling, Ill., assignor to Frantz Manufacturing 00., Sterling, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application July 14, 1933, Serial No. 680,442

.4 Claims.

trol, for causing the operation of the door by said spring power.

More specifically stated, it is also an object to provide an electrically controlled garage door of the kind that has an overhead horizontal open position.

It is also an object to provide certain details and features of construction tending to increase the general efficiency and desirability of an electrically controlled door of this particular character.

To the foregoing and other useful ends, the invention consists in matters hereinafter set forth and claimed, and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a vertical section showing a garage door with controlling means embodying the prin ciples of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view of certain lever elements.

'30 Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the parts in different positions.

Fig. 4 is an inside view of the door shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged view of the latching mechanism shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings.

As thus illustrated, the door I has its upper corners provided with rollers 2 that travel on the parallel overhead tracks 3 inside the garage. The door is shown in vertical closed position in full lines, and at 4 in open position in dotted lines. Thus the door is rigid all over and has an overhead horizontal open position.

Levers 5, one at each side of the doorway, are pivoted at 6 on the tracks 1 and at 8 on the inner side of the lower portion of the door. Lifting springs 9, helical in form, are hitched at their lower ends to the building structure at l0, and at their upper ends to the upper ends of said lever at H, adjustably, as shown. Said lever having rigid portions 12 to which are pivoted short links 13, and starting springs 14, helical in form, are fixed at their lower ends and connected at their upper ends to said short links. When the door is closed the springs and lever and links are in the positions shown in Fig. 1, Fig. 2 and Fig. 4 of the drawings. When the door is open, the said elements are in the position shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings. Thus the springs I are norm-ally under tension to start the upward movement of the door, and the relatively heavy 5 springs 9, 'also normally under tension, then raise the door into its open position.

It will be understood that such adjustment of the springs and such accuracy and relative arrangement of the parts is employed as will enable 19 the door to start tilting as soon as it is unlocked.

As the springs M are strong enough to start the door upward after it is unlocked, the invention contemplates more or less remote control by electric means to unlock the door, by any suitable 15 means. For example, latch bolts l5 and ii are shown mounted on the door to project inside of the sides of the doorway when the door is closed. The bolt i5 is reciprocated by a lever l1, and the latter is connected by a wire or cable l8 with the m bolt I6, which latter has a coil spring 18 tending to keep both bolts in projected position. At one side of the doorway there is a reciprocating'push rod l9, suitably mounted on the rear or inner side of the doorway, in line to operate the bolt I5 25 and, thereby, the bolt It, to unlock the door. This rod 19 is operated by the armature 20 of the electromagnet 2! of any suitable character. When the magnet is energized, the two locking bolts are withdrawn and the door is moved into open position by the spring power furnished by said springs. For the purpose of more or less remote control of said magnet, the energizing circuit thereof may have one or more push buttons 22 located in different positions, thereby to 35 conveniently open the door from the outside for a distance, or at the door. Inside, the hand lever I! can be operated to unlock the door.

The ends of the bolts 15 and I6 may be beveled to strike the doorway and retract and allow the 40 door to move into the doorway when it is closed. The head 23 of the rod l9 holds the bolts in retracted position until the door is out a distance,

when the door is opened.

Thus a spring operated door is locked in closed 45 position and the lock is electrically controlled to cause. the automatic opening of the door into an overhead position. Although no means are shown specifically for electrically closing the door, it is obvious, however, that the invention, more 50 broadly considered, is not limited to the opening of the door.

With the arrangement shown and described, which is illustrative of the invention, there is nothing that projects into the doorway, upon 55' which anything might catch when the door is in overhead open position, and an automobile is safe against injury of that kind.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In an automatic self-opening garage door of the class wherein springs are employed for opening the door, when the latter is unlocked, the combination of locking mechanism for attachment to the inner side of the door, and electromagnetic control mechanism forming no part of said locking mechanism and adapted and designed for attachment to the doorway in position to engage and move said locking mechanism into unlocking position on the door, thereby to unlock the latter.

2. A structure as specified in ciairn 1, said lock ing mechanism comprising a pair of reciprocating locking bolts for opposite side edges of the door,

means including a pivoted hand lever forming a connection between the two bolts, and spring means for actuating one bolt into locking position, connected with said lever, thereby to actuate the other bolt into locking position, whereby both bolts areunder the control of said electromagnetic mechanism.

3. A structure as specified in claim 1, said locking mechanism having spring means for moving this mechanism into locking position after the door is closed.

4. A structure as specified in claim 1, said electric control mechanism comprising an electromagnetic actuator which when energized serves to engage andmove an element of said locking mechanism into unlocking position on the door.

. VILLIALI D. FERRISL 

